ISLAMABAD: Federal Minister for Information and Broadcasting Fawad Chaudhry on Tuesday said that Pakistan Post has to adopt innovation and modernisation in its services to gain self-reliance, compete with international postal services and take steps for overcoming the annual loss of around eight billion rupees.
Speaking during a function arranged here by Pakistan Post to mark World Post Day, the federal minister said only 83 out of 13,000 post offices across the country have been digitalised so far which shows that we are seriously lagging behind in the era of digitalisation.
He said all those institutions, either falling under his ministry or another, will have to be self-reliant through adopting innovative means and following transparency, “If Radio Pakistan is getting funds of Rs4 billion and Pakistan Television (PTV) Rs 7.5 billion from the government, there is no room for these institutions to go into losses”, he said.
Fawad Chaudhry reiterated that the government did not want to approach International Monetary Fund (IMF) but had to take this difficult decision to bring the country out of the economic crisis, “The country needs $8 billion to pay back our loan and $28 billion to run the country”, he lamented.
He said the government has to take difficult decisions to make this country self-sustainable. “This is a difficult time for the country but we have to face it and bring stability and progress in our country at any cost”, he added.
Emphasising on the continuation of an accountability process in the country, Fawad said the process of accountability will continue despite all hue and cry made by corrupt people.
About the demand of requisitioning of National Assembly (NA) session by the opposition on this issue, Fawad said, “If the required majority agrees to call an NA session, we have no objection”.
“In the whole world, governments play a role to strengthen the institutions and empower their people while in our country the previous governments have weakened the institutions and crushed the ordinary man,” he said.
The previous governments have made excessive appointments in all the departments on the basis of favouritism which has ruined the institutions.
Fawad Chaudhry said, “We have to make our country financially stable. If all the institutions start relying on the government for funds, it will transfer the entire burden on the common people who are paying tax”.
“We cannot run Pakistan in routine to make people happy sitting in different institutions, assembly and other places. If we want sustainability then we have to correct ourselves first”, the minister said.
“Prime Minister (PM) Imran Khan feels a pain for the poor. He is an honest man and will neither make a single penny nor allow his cabinet to do so,” he said.
The federal minister said that the government will take steps to encourage and facilitate those overseas Pakistanis who want to invest in the country.
Pakistan Post Director General (DG) Rubina Tayyab read the message of Universal Postal Union’s (UPU) DG on the occasion while Postal Division Secretary Pir Bukhsh Khan Jamali briefed the minister about contributions of the postal sector.
